Destiny Unleashed
by Gengichi Rena
Summary: Bailey is faced with some difficult decisions as she tries to regain her lost memory. Can she help Sora save Kingdom Hearts from the threat of the organization and regain what she's lost? Rated for violence, language, and possibly other things
1. Day one: Introduction

Kingdom Hearts: Destiny Unleashed

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Author's notes: This story mainly follows the storyline of Kingdom Hearts II and is slightly based off an rpg done with my big sister. I do not own Kingdom Hearts or its characters. Bailey Strife belongs to me and unless given permission, I will not tolerate anyone using her in anything. Please do not steal story in any way, shape, or form. Using the story and replacing Character and Location names is not okay.

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Darkness: something that's been around since the beginning of time. We're born from it, and we return to it when we die. That is a known fact. We need darkness to survive.. so why is it so terrifying, sometimes?

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Chapter 1: Day One

I stood there as a box was taken from my hands and set down in its right place before I picked up another box and handed it over to be sorted into its own rightful spot in the storage hangar. After a moment, I pushed my messy, sweaty brown hair from my eyes. It was a hot day, and the fact that our air conditioning unit had broken down made nearly everything cling to my skin, and making me feel disgusting. I swallowed dryly, picking up the next box and handing it over before going to get the dolly to grab the next few boxes from the train. The heat coming from the train engine made me reel slightly, but I went ahead to get the boxes, anyway. After I transferred the boxes from the cargo car to the storage hangar, I heard a woman call out

"Your shift is over, Bailey. Why don't you go cool off? You've helped out quite enough."

I looked back at her and nodded, calling out my thanks before sighing and walking out of the station and trying to air out my white and red shirt. I ended up having to take off my half-sleeved hooded vest since that just made the heat even worse. When I got outside, I winced and shielded my eyes at the sun brightly glaring in my eyes. I looked at the bright sunset colors in the sky. This town was always bathed in twilight, even in the middle of the day. I suppose that's why its name is Twilight Town.

I came here about a year ago. Well, actually, it would probably be more of a 'just up and appeared out of thin air' thing. All of a sudden, I woke up to find myself in a hospital room, and the doctors said someone had found me lying in an alleyway somewhere. I can't remember anything from before I came here, just my name and age, but that's about it.

Bailey Strife: Aged 15... Oh, and for some reason, I remembered that I've had a bad past with oranges… which is weird since I love the fruit with a passion.

I tried everything to remember, but it seems that with every new memory I gain, the more the memories disappear.

I managed to rent a small apartment for pretty cheap near the alley I was found in, and I got a job working as staff for the station. It pays pretty well, and sometimes I'm even able to help work on the clock tower that's maintained here, too… Something about gears, grease, and wrenches just seems to make me happy. Not quite sure why, though.

I put some change on the counter of an ice-cream vendor and got a seasalt ice-cream, someone who hangs out at the clock tower recommended it to me, so I figured I'd try it.

I thanked the vendor before walking off, putting my hand in my jean pocket, purposely dragging my black and red shoes on the ground to hear the squeak they made as I took a bite. An expression of mixed emotions planted itself on my face. The ice-cream definitely lived up to its name. It was freaking salty! But it was really, REALLY sweet at the same time. After a few more bites I found myself addicted. It's like one of those things like when you have your hair up for a long time and then when you take it down it feels very painful but soooo good.

… Maybe I should have bought more than one.

"Ha ha, see? Didn't I tell you it was good?"

I blinked and turned to see a blonde-haired boy standing there with a smile on his face, arms crossed over his green vest and black shirt. A girl with brunette wavy hair, an orange and white floral shirt, and khaki capri pants stood next to him, hands behind her back. Beside her was another boy who was a bit on the short side, his black hair held up with a sweatband that matched his red jersey that had 'Dog Street' written on it down the side, blue jeans that looked a little too big for him, and a blue bandana tied around his neck. I smiled faintly as the blonde's smile turned into a grin,

"Oh, hey Hayner… Yes. It is VERY good."

That's Hayner, the neighborhood hot-head. He likes to explore places, and REALLY likes to spar. He seems to have something against a teen a little older than him named Seifer, but I never really knew why. He's two years older than me, but managed to get held back a year and wound up in my class. I think I'm the only one who doesn't tease him for that… at least out loud, anyways.

The girl smiled, leaning forward,

"Are you done with work, Bailey?"

That's Ollete. She's always level-headed, sweet, and smart. She's the one who usually gets everyone to think logically. She's the same age as me and is always at the top of the class. Everyone always tries to get her as a partner for projects since they know she's so intelligent, but funny enough, if they end up slacking too badly, she'll purposely fail the project just to mess with them. It's fun to hang out with her, especially since she's one of the few girls around my age.

I nodded a bit, smiling,

"Yeah, and I'm glad, too. The AC broke down and we haven't gotten the chance to fix it, yet, so I was burning up in there. Right now I was headed home to change out of these sweaty clothes."

The other boy laughed, hands behind his head and smiling, nodding,

"Yeah, we just came from there. It's too hot to make the climb to the clock tower, today, so we're just gonna go hang out at the usual spot."

And last, but not least, that's Pence. He's funny and always manages to cheer you up. He's one of the more superstitious types, being really into ghosts and things. One of his bigger obsessions lately is the '7 wonders of Twilight Town'. Apparently some weird things have been going on, on the other side of town that can't really be explained. He's a year younger than Ollete and I, but he's in our class, as well, and manages to keep some pretty good grades.

I laugh a bit, smiling a bit before watching as Hayner and the others waved, heading out,

"See ya later, Bailey!"

I watched them head off before heading to my apartment building. I checked my mailbox in the room where the residents' boxes were kept before heading up the stairs to my apartment. Before I got there, I stopped in front of a door a little ways down the hall from my own, staring at it with a frown on my face. This apartment had belonged to another boy about my age who had arrived a few months after I did. He always used to hang out with Hayner's group, and I had a pretty fun time hanging out with him, too. But, one day, he just up and disappeared, without a word. There was a search going for weeks, but no one could find any traces of him. Hayner and the others have managed to get along without him, but everyone knows they're still all rather depressed about the topic. I frowned as I put a hand on the door,

"Where in the world did you go, Roxas…?"

I sighed before heading down the hall. I stopped in front of my door and got out my keys, unlocking the door and heading inside. I checked my messages on my phone, getting that dreaded one that reminded me to send in my rent pay for the week. I went and got something quick to eat and counted my munny to see how much I'd had before heading into my room.

After I got some fresh clothes on, I ran a few errands, picking up some groceries and dropping off my rent for the week. By the time I got home, it was already dark out. I put my groceries away in their rightful places before pouring myself some milk. After taking a shower, I got changed into my PJs and crawled into bed, sighing in content and exhaustion. I looked up at the moon and stars through my window and looked at them for a while before slowly falling asleep, the lights from the stars showing even behind my eyelids as they slowly drooped to a close.

. . . . . . . . . .

_Screams pierced the air as people of all ages were sent scattering. She was woken from these sounds and her eyes widened when the house was tinted orange as flames started to engulf its wooden structure. She got frantic when she couldn't find her older brother. She climbed out of her bed and clutched at her stuffed wolf, running all throughout the house and looking for him, calling out for him,_

_"Nii-sama!"_

_When she got outside, she screamed when the house collapsed, everything in it turning to ash. She turned away from the house before her eyes widened when she saw black creatures running around and going after children and adults alike. She tried to back up to the house, but she stumbled forward again when the flames licked at her heels. She jolted upright when she heard a noise beside her, and she clutched at her wolf as she turned, looking to her side and up at the black monster that stood a couple feet taller than her, looking down at her with beady yellow eyes and twitching. She swallowed hard, opening her mouth to cry out, but nothing would escape._

_It tilted its head before it lunged at her, and she finally managed to move, stumbling backwards and scrambling to her feet again before running as fast as her little legs could carry her. She heard someone call the thing a 'Neo Shadow' but she just kept running, managing to lose it. She sniffed, tears starting to fall down her cheeks as she saw people disappear and get attacked by the black monsters, houses collapsing to the ground from fire. She turned, holding the wolf close and looking all around,_

_"Nii-sama! Nii-sama!"_

_She started to cry, tears soaking into the wolf's fur, but she was quickly startled when she heard some more of those Neo Shadows heading her way, and she quickly scurried to the nearby alley, fitting herself between a gap in a group of stacked boxes, curling up tightly to try and hide herself. She sniffed and hiccupped, not able to stifle her crying completely,_

_"Nii-sama…! Where are you? Save me, please! Don't let them hurt me...! Cloud!"_

_At that moment, the boxes were thrown away from her, and she looked up quickly before being engulfed by darkness, and a shrill scream echoed out from where she was, signaling the others in the area that the heartless had gotten yet another one in their invasion. Her wolf fell to the ground and was torn a few times and stained in her tears and in darkness._

_She was only 5 years old._

_. . . . . . . . . ._

In an instant I was woken and I quickly sat up, eyes wide as tears flowed down my face, a good amount of tears having already stained my pillow. I swallowed hard, looking down and noticing that I was shaking. I shook my head rapidly and managed to calm myself down, wiping my eyes and sagging faintly. I looked out the window at the moon that was still high in the sky before turning and looking at the clock; it was 3:48. I sighed and shook my head, staring at my covers.

"I had that nightmare again…"

Did that really happen? Was it possible that it could have been a memory? What in the world were those creatures? Who was Cloud?

I sighed and shook my head once more before flipping my pillow over to the dry side and laying my head back down. For now, I wouldn't worry about that, I would just concentrate on getting some sleep.

The next morning came fairly quickly with no dreams that I could really recall. I frowned and looked up at the sun before sighing and letting my head fall,

"Damn it… I forgot what nightmare I had again… and I was going to try and find out what it was about, too… gah!"

I fell back on my bed with a huff.


	2. Day 2: The Fight

Kingdom Hearts: Destiny Unleashed

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This chapter was... interesting to write. I am trying to follow the storyline of kingdom hearts, but because I'm not following Roxas, figuring out what to do in the 6 days is confusing...

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Chapter 2: Day two

Today was a rather slow going. The air conditioning unit still hadn't been fixed, and while today wasn't as hot as yesterday, the inside of the station was like the inside of an oven. I actually envied the people boarding the nice air-conditioned trains, but I continued on with my work.

It was a particularly torturous day because I was in charge of cleaning the clock tower, today. And not just sweeping and moping the floors, oh no, I had clear the spider webs, shine up the railing, and I even had to clean the clock face, too. I would have been a little less reluctant if I were allowed to help with the monthly maintenance on the clock's gears.

When I was finished, the manager gave me my pay for the week and I headed out. I didn't get too far from the station before I heard some people talking about a fight a little further down the road. I frowned before going to check out what was going on. When I got there, I found myself faced with a rather large crowd formed around the alleged fight, some chanting "Fight!" and some yelping in sympathy at certain times.

"That is IT, Seifer! I can't take this anymore! You're dead!"

That was… Hayner's voice!

"Ha! What're you going to do about it?"

I frowned deeply and tried to peer above the heads of the others, trying to find a way to the center before someone spoke up from behind me

"Hmph, Is that kid really someone Roxas used to hang out with?"

My eyes went wide when I heard Roxas' name, and I whirled around just to catch a glimpse of a red-head in a black cloak walk out of sight.

I must have been just hearing things… right?

I shook my head to clear it before I pushed my way through the crowd. I finally managed to stumble to the center, and when I got there, it wasn't a good sight to see. It was indeed Hayner, and it looked like he'd gotten into another fight with Seifer, but this one was bad. What looked to be a brawl with the struggle match 'swords' turned into an all out fist-fight. I was honestly glad that Ollete and Pence weren't there to see that, and hoped that they wouldn't. Hayner had bruise marks all up his arms from the struggle swords, and it looked like he now had a black eye and a broken nose. Seifer wasn't in very good shape, either; he had a rather large bruise on his stomach that had shown in the area that wasn't covered by his shirt, and his hat had been pulled off, showing the large scar that he'd already had from a fight that no one knows about. His cheek looked really badly injured, and he had a split, fat lip… And now Hayner gave him a black eye to match his own.

I looked around, but couldn't see Fuu or Rai anywhere, though I wasn't complaining, since Hayner would probably be in even worse shape if they'd tag-teamed him. I frowned, calling out to them,

"Hayner, stop this! Hayner! Seifer!"

"Stay out of this, Bailey! This doesn't concern you!" Hayner called

I frowned before running in and grabbing Hayner away, kicking Seifer in the gut to push him back. I kept a tight grip on Hayner as he struggled to get at Seifer, and I frowned, looking at him,

"Hayner, this is going too far! Stop! Do you want to end up in the hospital?"

He just wouldn't listen. I growled before making Hayner sit down, and when Seifer got up and readied an attack on Hayner, I whirled around and decked him square in the face. The 'audience' gasped at this, and some of them cheered a bit. I glared at Seifer before throwing a death glare at Hayner as he tried to get up. This made him think twice about moving, and he stayed in place. I gave a final passing glance to Seifer telling him to back off, before dragging Hayner by his hair off to the usual spot where he and the others hang out. After throwing him onto the couch, I glared at him,

"Just WHAT, in Gaia's name, has gotten into you?"

He looked off to the side with a stubborn look on his face,

"He started it…"

I let out an aggravated sigh as I got out the medical kit that Ollete keeps here, starting to take care of his injuries,

"Hayner, he _always _starts it. But what the hell did he do that drove you to the point of trying to punch him to death?"

Hayner looked down and away, frowning deeply. When he spoke, it was very quiet,

"He… He insulted Roxas…"

I blinked, letting my arms drop to my sides as he continued to explain

* * *

"Tsk, hey, Blondie, don't wimp out on the competition on Thursday!"

Hayner scoffed, frowning at the older boy, Seifer. After a moment of remembering something, he smirked, laughing

"Speak for yourself, Seifer. Don't you remember last year before the tournament? You and Roxas only had a little spar. When he beat you, you chickened out and dropped out of the running, even though Roxas didn't even enter!"

Seifer growled before turning and smirking,

"Ha, well at least I'm not the loser who ran out on his friends."

Hayner jumped before gritting his teeth,

"What did you just say?"

"Hmph, I'll bet he's just a lowly coward. I mean come on! The idiot didn't even tell anyone where he was going! Oh, I know, maybe someone kidnapped him, and he was too much of a wuss to fight back!"

Hayner growled, trembling as he tried hard to control his anger. This was really starting to push him off the edge, though… How could he sit back as this idiot was bad-mouthing Roxas like this? He trembled as he spoke,

"You need to shut your mouth, Seifer, or you'll regret it…"

Seifer scoffed, sneering at the fuming blonde,

"Why should I? I'm telling the truth, you know. All he is; is a pathetic _loser_, and he'll _stay_ a pathetic loser."

* * *

"And… That's when I lunged at him…"

I sighed a bit, shaking my head as I began to treat his wounds, although I grew gentler after hearing that.

"Hayner… I know what he said was terrible… But you can't keep doing this to yourself. One of these days you're going to end up in a hospital, in jail, or dead… You don't really want that, do you?"

He didn't answer for a long moment. After I managed to wrap up his bloody knuckles, he spoke up, even quieter than before,

"… Don't tell Ollete… or Pence… Please."

I looked up at him, frowning,

"Hayne-"

"_Please_, Bailey…"

I stared at him before sighing and looking down, continuing to fix him up,

"… Alright, I won't. But promise me you won't do this again."

He nodded a bit, and I left the subject alone as I placed a bandage on his forehead.

When Ollete and Pence got back, Hayner and I told them that he'd slipped on the stairs to the clock tower, and somehow they actually believed us.

I stayed around until it got dark to make sure Hayner was okay, before heading back to my apartment. By the time I got there, it was already late.

I stared at the ground as I sat on my bed, holding the controller to my game console. The starter menu chimed in its opening theme, but was blocked out by my wandering thoughts,

"… Now that I think about it… He's gotten hurt quite a few times and said it was because he'd fallen down the stairs, or got hit by some boxes that'd fallen down… Could it be that he's gotten into fights with Seifer like this, before…?"

I sighed a bit, pinching the bridge of my nose,

"Hayner… First Roxas worries the hell out of me, and now you…?"

I looked out the window out the moon, thinking. I know why Hayner lied to them, especially Ollete. Those two worry enough as it is about Hayner and other things. Adding this would just make it worse. And, the fact that Hayner likes Ollete makes it even harder to tell the truth to her…

I sighed loudly and got up, getting ready for bed before I flopped over on my pillow, pulling the covers over my head. After a while, I soon found myself asleep.

* * *

I woke up in a panic in the middle of the night, having had the same nightmare as before. I sagged when I figured out I was awake and looked over at my desk. I frowned before standing up and grabbing my notebook and started writing down the details of the dream, not wanting to forget this time.

I ended up falling asleep right at the end, making my pencil draw a scewed line. When I woke up again, I blinked, the paper sticking to my face from having fallen asleep at my desk. I yawned before looking down at the notebook,

"... Let's find out what this means."


	3. Day three: Rage

Kingdom Hearts: Destiny Unleashed

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Author's Notes: Chapter's up, now~ I have to say, I REALLY had fun with this one xDDD I think I like writting fighting scenes.

Yay! Three more days, and then this story will seem more like Kingdom Hearts! xDDD

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters used in this story, other than Bailey Strife. Please do NOT steal this story in any way, shape, or form, and if you would like to use my character, please ask.

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Chapter 3: Day Three

The majority of the morning was filled with checking the libraries, citizenship records, and every other source of information I could find that related to the dream I'd had. Unfortunately, I didn't get very far. There was absolutely no record of any person named 'Cloud' in Twilight Town, or in any of the surrounding towns. One person I tried asking ended up hanging up on me because they thought that I was asking for an actual cloud that was walking around.

I ended up getting very angry with the phone because of that.

The only records I could find about any fires were just for individual, small fires that burnt down only one or two buildings. None of them were or any towns that burnt to the ground. I even looked up any records of any girls going missing during a fire, but either everyone had gotten out of the building of the fire, or they'd located the missing girl not too long after.

No matter where I looked, or where I turned, I always ended up at a dead end. Maybe it really was just a dream, after all… But if it was, then why was I having it over and over again in the same exact specific detail? This didn't make sense. If it really was me, then there would be some record of those events… It's as if I don't belong on this world.

After getting nowhere, I decided to stop for the day and get something to eat, having skipped breakfast this morning. I sat down at an outside table at a restaurant and looked at my notebook, poking it a few times,

"You're useless, you know that? I'm finally able to remember that dream because of you, but I still can't figure out what any of it means… Stupid notebook. I hate you."

At that moment, as if in retort to what I'd said, a fierce wind blew by and blew my notebook open, making the loose pages in it scatter. I jumped and dashed after the flying pages,

"No, wait! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to say that! I love you! Please don't fly away!"

I have to admit, I probably looked like an idiot chasing after the floating pages, shouting at them and ending up tripping a few times. One of them flew around my head in a circle, and I followed it quickly, reaching out to grab it, and ended up getting dizzy after spinning too fast, too many times. I growled before jumping after them,

"Get back here!"

When I went to reach for one of the notebook pages, a boot stepped down on it to prevent me from grabbing it. I frowned and looked up to see a bandaged Seifer smirking down and laughing,

"Are you _seriously _talking to the notebook pages?"

I frowned deeply as a girl and boy stepped up next to him, a smaller boy toddling up behind them.

The girl had red eyes and short, silver-ish hair that covered her left eye. Her blue, sleeveless shirt zipped up down the middle, and her tan capris went passed her knees and closed around her leg, showing off her faded purple shoes. This is Fuujin, better known as Fuu. She's 17, two years older than me, and one year younger than Seifer. I don't know too much about her, since she doesn't seem to like to talk about her past. One of her biggest traits, though, is the fact that she speaks in one worded sentences. On a rare occasion, she'll speak in two word sentences… But like I said, that's only on rare occasions.

The older boy on the other side of Seifer was rather tall, and very muscular. He had dark brown, short hair, a bit of facial hair on his chin, brown eyes, and a tan complexion to match. He had an orange sleeveless shirt with black leafy designs outlined in white, blue-ish grey sweatpants with a number 8 and dark red stripes down the sides fit loosely and fell over his white and yellow sneakers. His wrists sported white and blue sports wristbands, and a silver chained necklace hung around his neck and held a lightning bolt pendant. This is Raijin, also known as Rai. He's 18, like Seifer, and is, unfortunately, in my class. I thought Hayner was bad, but this guy? Wow. He's not all too bright, but he makes up for it with strength. I swear, the guy probably works out at least 10 hours a day, or something… maybe that's why he doesn't get good grades. One of my biggest pet peeves about him is the fact that at the end of all of his sentences, he always says 'Y'know'. Even in his essays, he always says 'y'know'. It annoys the hell out of me.

I glared up at Seifer as I tried to get my paper, but he just pulled it back, not wanting me to get it back, just yet

"Buzz off, Seifer. I don't have time for a moron like you."

Seifer glared at me, Rai growling and holding up a fist,

"You can't talk to Seifer like that, y'know!"

"Yeah, you still owe me big time, for that deck in the face yesterday, girlie. So I wouldn't go around calling me names." Seifer scoffed

I raised an eyebrow, rolling my eyes,

"Oh? You're the one who provoked Hayner to the point of violence. You deserved it. Now if you'll excuse me, I would like to get that paper back, so please move."

Seifer's eyes narrowed as he smirked, towering over me to try and intimidate me.

"Make me."

I frowned before grabbing Seifer's leg and pulling it out from under him. A few people stopped and stared as Seifer fell to the ground. I grabbed the paper he'd stepped on and sighed as I stood up,

"Great, now it's got dirt all over it. Thanks a lot, Seifer…"

Fuu and Rai helped Seifer up, and he growled, glaring at me as I went to go put the paper back with my notebook. Seifer wiped his mouth before growling,

"I didn't want to have to do this, Bailey. But you've _really_ ticked me off… Thrash her."

Vivi jumped as Rai suddenly bolted forward, raising a fist. I frowned, looking to the side before I grabbed his arm just before he punched me, pulling him over my shoulder and slamming him onto the ground. He coughed at this before yelping as I picked him up, whirling around and throwing him back at Seifer, sending them both into the wall. A few people who'd stopped gasped at the fact I was able to throw someone much larger than me. Seifer coughed before growling and trying to push Rai off of him,

"Get off me, you idiot!"

Yet another crowd was forming, which made me sick. Why is it that these people are so quick to form a crowd as if this were all for show?

Fuu frowned and turned to me, eyes narrowed as I stood before her. I picked up another one of my papers as she ran at me. I ducked as she swiped at me before standing up and side-stepping as she ran at me. She stumbled forward and ended up getting stuck in a trash can, looking like she was sitting in it. She groaned as the lid to the trash can fell off her head, showing that she was covered in garbage. She looked down at herself, frowning,

"Disgusting…."

I went to go pick up another paper before looking up at Seifer as he stood in front of me, teeth bared as he snarled,

"That is it, Bailey. No more mister nice guy!"

My eyes narrowed as I looked at him. By this time, an entire audience had formed, and a lot of them were the ones who'd witnessed Seifer's fight with Hayner yesterday, and were wondering how I was going to measure up to him. This time, Seifer had no struggle sword to fight with, so he lunged at me with clenched fists. I side-stepped his blow and put the papers in my vest. He whirled around and clocked me over the head, making me stumble to the side. I rubbed the newly formed bruise and turn, eyes narrowed as he bolted after me. I growled

"Fine, if that's how you're going to play."

I caught his fist in my hand, and when he swung the other at me, I caught that as well. I started to bend his fists backward, making him grit his teeth. He growled before bringing up his knee, trying to get my stomach, but I jumped back. Seifer glared at me, wiping his mouth,

"Come on, quit playing around, and fight!"

I glared at him,

"I shouldn't have to! I don't want to fight if there isn't a reason to. Just leave me alone, Seifer."

I turned and went to go grab my notebook, and the crowd all grumbled to themselves while starting to disperse, thinking that the fight was over. Seifer turned, growling,

"Oh, so you're going to run away, huh? Just like that coward, Roxas?"

I stopped in my tracks, and this made him blink, a smirk finding its way onto his face,

"Wow, I didn't think that a fool with no memories could get so sensitive about a coward."

I gritted my teeth, fists pulling tight. My god, this man just knows how to get under your skin, doesn't he? I turned and threw the worst death glare at him, making him flinch slightly. He whistled a bit,

"Wow. Now doesn't that remind me of someone? Yours is nothing special, though"

I bared my teeth,

"Seifer, I swear if you say one more thing, I will rip you throat out."

Seifer scoffed, grinning evilly, testing to see if that were true,

"Such an empty threat, from an empty person. Now I know why Roxas left. Who would want to be around an empty shell like you?"

I was in front of him within seconds; slamming my fist into his face and sending him stumbling back before I raised my leg high into the air and brought my foot down on his head, making him double over. He gritted his teeth before slamming his fist into my head, splitting it open and making blood stream to my chin and stain parts of my hair. Within the next moment, it was all out war, and I didn't even notice the crowd coming back, getting larger by the moment.

I grabbed Seifer's head by his hair, his hat having been thrown off once again, and I spun him around, throwing him into the ground. He choked before jumping when I came over, slamming my foot onto his stomach. He growled before grabbing my ankle, pulling my foot out from under me and making me fall to the ground, hard. I landed flat on my face and ended up getting a bloody nose, making it to where I had to breathe through my teeth in order to get oxygen.

He got to his feet, going to slam his fist down, before I shifted my weight and spun my legs around, both knocking him to the ground, and getting back onto my feet. He quickly got back to his feet as well, and we both stepped forward, each about to throw a punch. I tried to dodge his, but we both ended up getting hit, him in the nose, and me in the cheek. We stumbled back from each other, Seifer stumbling back to the only wall that wasn't full of crowding people. I was fast, and got to him in a flash, starting to throw punches. He dodged as best he could, making me slam my knuckles into the concrete wall. I didn't care, just ignored the pain and continued to try and slam my fist through his skull. After a few times, He managed to knee me in the stomach, making me stumble back. My knuckles stung badly, blood running down my fingers, but in my rage I was numb to the pain.

I swear I am going to hit this guy so hard he'll be knocked right out of that provocative streak for good.

Seifer was quick, running after me to land another hit. I turned and glared at him before raising my fist and swinging, hitting him as hard as I could and hitting him square in the face, again. This time, I broke his nose, and he stumbled backward, dizzy from the punch.

"I… Can't lose… I'm…-"

Within a second he went tumbling down like a tree that'd just gotten the last strike from the ax.

Fuu and Rai had finally broken through the crowd that'd kept them at bay, and they were beside their leader within moments. Rai growled when he saw how much of a mess his leader had become and looked up at me, growling. He was about to speak up, but when I looked at him with the rage in my eyes, he swallowed hard and looked back down, thinking twice about his decision to go after me. I turned and stalked over to the table where my things were, and the crowd quickly spread apart to give me room. I grabbed my things and turned to head home, the crowd all going back to what they were originally doing. One group stayed where they were, though; all of them staring at me with wide eyes. I frowned, stopping and staring ahead as Hayner and the others all stared at me in shock. I looked back at them briefly before I looked down again, heading off.

... There was no way I could face them.

* * *

After that, I locked myself in my bedroom. I sat there, awake in my bed, just staring at the ceiling for what seemed like years. The pounding of my headache probably didn't help matters much. My whole body ached from the bruises and cuts that were scabbing over.

My phone kept ringing throughout the night, and I sat there, listening to the answering machine pick up over and over. People calling either to cheer me on or scold me. Hayner and the others called the most though, seeming to be worried about me.

"Bailey, please pick up. Look, I don't know what happened, but it's alright. Just pick up… Please?"

I listened to Hayner continue on, before he ended up getting cut off because his message was too long. Ollete tried next, then Pence. I didn't move, just stayed there in my bed.

I was ashamed of myself. I mean… how couldn't I be? I'd just gotten into one of the biggest fights the town had seen outside of the struggle matches, and that's not something to be proud of.

I'd sunk down to Seifer's level, letting myself get caught up in my anger.

In truth, I was never really good at controlling my emotions; my anger especially. Ever since I could remember, I'd always struggled hard at trying to suppress my anger. This time, I'd failed.

I'd let my anger get the better of me.

The phone rang again, and this time it was Seifer leaving a message, sounding rather pissed.

"Listen up, Strife! Unless you decide that you want to apologies, I better not see your face around, aga-"

I picked the phone up off the receiver, just to slam it back down again, hanging up on him.

I can just imagine the look on his face, now.

A smirk appeared across my face and slowly turned into a grin as I started to chuckle myself. Before I knew it, I was laughing my head off.

I have to say… Beating the crap out of Seifer?

It felt pretty damn good.

* * *

To be continued


	4. Day 4: The Struggle

Author's note: This one was giving me trouble, for some reason _ I honestly don't know why... But until we get to the part where Sora comes in, I will probably have a bit of trouble with these. Please forgive me T_T

Disclaimer: Kingdom hearts and all its characters do NOT belong to me. The only one I personally own is Bailey Strife. Christina Leonheart belongs to my siser: Heart-of-Memories/FlyonSilverWings.

* * *

Chapter 4:

-Day four-

_I don't want to be alone anymore…_

_"Chrissie!"_

_A little girl with brown hair that was held up in a ponytail turned around before yelping as the other girl tackled her in a hug. 'Chrissie' made a slight face at her friend, but shook it off, smiling,_

_"Bai!"_

_-Why am I always alone?_

_"Don't go near the cliff, you two."_

_The girls both nodded, chiming at the same time before Christie turned and poked the little girl,_

_"You're 'It'!"_

_The little girl blinked a few times as her friend ran off, and she chased after, a wide grin on her face as she giggled. A little ways away, three teenagers were training with their various weapons, and three smaller children, around the age of Christie and the other girl, sat watching them. One of them, a redhead, was picking the flowers to bring back to her parents and grandmother. The two boys were watching the older boys fight, smiling before holding out their wooden swords to each other, trying a few of the moves they saw_

_-I'm lonely… always, always lonely…_

_A sudden scream sounded out, and the others whirled around to see Christie, but the other little girl was gone. It seemed like Christie was trying to pull someone up from the cliff, and the blonde called out, bolting over. When he got there, he could see the girl hanging from the cliff, holding Christie's hand tightly so as not to fall to the deep gorge below. _

_The other kids all cried out as the two boys tried to keep them from running over, fearing they might fall over as well. After struggling a bit, the blonde finally helped Christie pull the girl from the cliff, and held her close to him, swallowing hard as she sobbed into his chest. Christie looked like she was going to cry, too, and the older brunette ran over to her, picking her up and holder her close to him._

_-I'm scared… I don't want to be alone… I don't want to be alone!_

* * *

I sat up quickly, eyes wide. When I saw that I was in my room, I sighed to myself.

These dreams… they're new.

I looked out the window, frowning a bit. Today was the Struggle Match… I promised I would be there to cheer Hayner on… But… how could I face him, after what happened yesterday? Not only was I ashamed of what had happened, but I'd also completely ignored their calls… I'll bet I'd be the last person he wanted to see…

After a while of debate, I finally decided to go to the Struggle Match.

"Hurry up, struggle fans! The Struggle is about to start!"

When I got to the sandlot where the match was going to be held, I found that almost the entire place was completely packed. There were people on the roofs watching through windows, and filling the sidelines outside of the platform where the matches were going to be held. I took a spot near the stairs leading up to the Back Alley, leaning against one of the walls and watching. After a while of scanning the crowds, I found Hayner and the others right at the front of the crowd.

Hayner looked around at the crowd, frowning. Ollete looked at Hayner before around, and Pence sighed,

"Bailey didn't come today… huh?"

Ollete sighed and shook her head and Hayner just frowned and looked away, looking pissed as always.

Soon fireworks shot off and the crowd cheered as the announcer stepped up on stage,

"Ladies and gentleman, Struggle fiends of Twilight Town! It's time for summer's most sizzling clash!" The announcer held his arms out wide "That's right! Today is the day for the Struggle and title match! Who will be the one to break through the ranks and take on the champion, Setzer!"

I could hear Rai call out loud over the crowd,

"Seifer! Y'know?"

I rolled my eyes and shook my head before looking up as the announcer continued,

"And who will leave today as our new Struggle Champion!"

Ollete and Pence called out,

"Hayner!"

A smile spread across my face.

"Setzeerrrrrrr!"

My eye twitched at the fangirl's cooing and I got a look of utmost disgust as a man with silvery hair walked up on stage, holding a belt over his shoulder.

Setzer: the man who held the title of "Champion" in the struggle. The man was even more annoying than Seifer. And _that_ is saying something. He only ever came to this side of Twilight Town for the struggle match, but the time that he was here always put a thorn in my side. I swear; the man is completely full of himself. Maybe he's gotten one-too-many scars, and it's gotten to his head.

"Yes, the crowd is fired up, so you know what comes next: Let's… STRUGGLE!"

The crowd roared with cheers, and I couldn't help but smile, myself. A second man came up to the platform and began to speak,

"Hey, now. It's time to introduce today's combatants! The four bad boys who struggled their way through the preliminaries! Regular finalist and head of the Twilight Disciplinary Committee: Seifer!"

My eye twitched.

"Completely out of nowhere-who knew he'd make it so far THIS year? Vivi!"

Vivi blushed and fidgeted at the mention of his name, and I smiled. It was great that Vivi was trying something like this. I was happy for him.

"An underground favorite and local attitude problem: Hayner! It's his first trip to the finals!"

I laughed a bit to myself, shaking my head. 'Attitude problem' indeed.

After all of the announcing and showing the prizes to everyone, and the others all went over the official Struggle rules, the first match started up.

Unfortunately, Vivi was clobbered in the first match, and I couldn't help but feel bad for him. He'd managed to hold his own down to the last second before getting knocked down.

Hayner didn't look very happy, and was lashing out at his opponent without remorse. I almost felt bad for him. You never want to get in Hayner's way when he's mad. He completely blew his opponent out of the water, not giving him any chance of fighting back.

So now, it was down to just Hayner and Seifer. I was honestly dreading this match. Because of what happened yesterday, surely Hayner would go off the deep-end. Seifer smirked,

"Alright, _loser,_ ready to get thrashed? After what happened yesterday, I'm still pissed.

Please, please don't let Hayner get hurt, and please don't let him go too far. I cupped my hands around my mouth,

"Hayner! Don't let him get to you!"

Hayner jumped when he heard me and whirled around to stare at me, eyes wide as I continued,

"Just concentrate on the match! You'll be fine!"

He stared for a moment more before nodding and turning back to Seifer. Seifer rolled his eyes as the announcer called for the match to start. Seifer'd ended up winning the tournament, to Hayner's dismay. But he seemed happier than I thought he'd be. Almost as soon as he was finished, he came up to me,

"I thought you weren't gonna come."

I blinked before frowning a bit, looking to the side,

"I couldn't _not_ come… I promised I'd come to cheer you on."

Hayner smiled before pouting, turning and crossing his arms,

"Oh yeah, and _that_ helped. I lost! Some cheerleader you are."

I made a face,

"Oh, come on, Hayner. You know how much I hate cheerleaders."

He grinned, laughing and nodding.

For the rest of the day, Seifer and his gang was going around, gloating with his trophy. I have to say, I wanted to rip that trophy out of his hands and smack him upside the head with it, but I thought better of it. Apparently the announcer had taken a liking to Seifer, and was asking him to show him some of his 'super cool moves'. Tsk, yeah right. All that managed to do was make Seifer even fuller of himself.

I managed to apologize to the others about what had happened the day before. To my surprise, the only thing that they were upset about was the fact that I didn't tell them what had happened. Other than that, they were pretty worried about me. Maybe I should have just tried to face them, rather than run away. Then I would have known how worried they were about me…

God. I'm an idiot.

* * *

"What's that?"

They watched as the bottle floated out with the current, drifting farther and farther away

"A letter… I wrote it yesterday to the boy I can't remember. I said that no matter where he is… I'll find him. One day. And when I stopped writing I remembered we made a promise, something important. This letter is where it starts. I know it."

"Wow… I hope he gets it."

The redhead smiled, nodding

"He will… Starts with an "S." Right, Sora?"

The blonde turned to look at her friend, blinking,

"Kairi?"

The redhead smiled, shaking her head. After a moment, she frowned, looking down at the sand when she couldn't see the bottle holding her letter,

"I remembered something else, while I was writing that letter."

The blonde blinked, tilting her head

"What about?"

"It was about my home… The place where I'd first come from… I remember… There were these two girls that I had played with, sometimes… I remember… the one was Christie, the one who was on the island with us, before…But… for some reason, I just can't remember the other one's name. I don't know why, but it feels important…"

* * *

_to be continued..._


	5. Day five: Truth Part 1

Due to being all weird and not letting me upload the chapters when I finished them, You get two chapters in one day! Yay!

This one is loooong. Very very long . it makes me happy.

Disclaimer: Kingdom Hearts/Final Fantasy and all its characters do NOT belong to me. Ownership belongs to Square Enix/Disney Interactive. The only one I personally own is Bailey Strife. Christina Leonheart belongs to my siser: Heart-of-Memories/FlyonSilverWings. Shizu was created by both of us, so I have co-ownership on her.

* * *

-Day 5- Part 1

_The little girl was bouncing up and down, staring out the window with a smile on her face before wincing slightly when a hand came over her head to make her stop bouncing, an 18-year-old boy with black spiky hair, standing there laughing, was trying to get her to calm down,_

"_Settle down, kiddo! He'll be here soon, don't worry."_

_The little girl grinned and nodded. _

"_Okay, Zack!"_

_Her older brother, Cloud, had been out on a mission for SOLDIER, and was going to come home that day. Of course she was overjoyed. _

-"I'm scared…"

_She would always wait for him. Every time Cloud had gone to a mission for SOLDIER, or when he and Squall had gone on a mission for Radiant Garden, she always waited for him. She didn't mind. She loved staying with the others who babysat her. _

_-in darkness_

_On the days when it was just Cloud, Zack Fair would be the one who took care of her. Sometimes, even Tifa Lockhart would babysit her, as well. She loved Zack and Tifa to death. To her, they were some of the coolest people ever. Then again, she thought everyone in Radiant was cool. But Zack and Tifa came out on top… behind her brother, of course. _

_-alone_

_Sometimes Lea would babysit them, since Reno was off doing Turk stuff for ShinRa. On the first day, he learned that it was NOT a good idea to give the little girl sugar. She'd had one chocolate bar, and Lea and the others all watched as she'd literally bounced off the walls. She was going for hours and when Cloud had finally got back, he'd told Lea that he was going to take care of her until her sugar-high was over. It can be said that the fiery red-head was crying at this news._

_-"I'm scared…"_

_When Cloud and Squall had a mission with Zack, though, it was usually a woman named Shizu who babysat her and Christie, Squall's little sister. Shizu looked really frail, like just touching her would end up breaking her, and she had long, white hair pulled back out of her face. But she wasn't old-looking, either. She looked like she was either in her 20s, or 30s, and she was very pretty. The girl wasn't quite sure how old Shizu was. She had asked once, but ended up getting a good whack on the head that had her seeing stars until Cloud had gotten home. She learned not to ask Shizu those kinds of questions._

_-nothing but darkness_

_She was soon able to see the familiar blonde walk around the corner. He had a few new bruises, and there were more bandages, but he was home. Cloud was home. _

_-"I'm scared…"_

_Before he could even get through the door, the little girl tackled him hard enough to knock him down, and was grinning ear to ear,_

"_Nii-sama!"_

_The blonde shook his head to clear it, and Zack laughed, grin widening at the slight glare he received. Cloud huffed before smiling down at the girl,_

"_Come on, it's time to come home, Bailey."_

_-ALWAYS alone._

"_Nii-sama…! Where are you? Save me, please! Don't let them hurt me...! Cloud!"_

_Don't let them hurt me… don't leave me alone… I'm scared…! I DON'T WANT TO BE ALONE ANYMORE!_

* * *

I went into work a little early, and when I got there, I was surprised to see Hayner and the gang there. Pence looked up at the train heading to Sunset Terrace,

"The time has come! Our hunt for the Seven Wonders begins!"

I went up to them

"Hey, what're you guys doing?"

They turned to me and Pence grinned,

"We're doing an investigation on the "Seven Wonders of Twilight Town." They're all at Sunset Terrace, so we're heading over there now."

I blinked, tilting my head,

"You know… I've heard you talk about them before, Pence, but what exactly _are_ these 'wonders'?"

Pence counted on his fingers

"There's 'The Spooky Steps', where the steps leading down from the train on Sunset Terrace count differently going up and down."

I frowned a bit,

"Wasn't that just Rai counting wrong?"

Ollete nodded,

"Yeah. Fuu ended up hitting him because of all the fuss he'd caused."

Pence continued,

"'The Friend from Beyond the Wall" is where out of nowhere a ball just flies from the wall, as if someone was throwing it at you."

I blinked a few times. A ball flying out of nowhere…?

"Then there's 'The Moans from the Tunnel'. You know the old tunnel-ways that they're fixing up right now? Well, apparently, there are noises that echo throughout the ones that come out at Sunset Terrace, but no one is in there."

I crossed my arms,

"Okay, that's just creepy."

Hayner laughed at this, making me pout, but Pence just continued,

"The 4th one is 'The Doppelganger'. Apparently, people have been seeing their doppelgangers in the corner of Sunset Terrace, but the mirror waterfall."

"Couldn't they just be seeing their reflections in the water?"

Pence shook his head,

"Not sure. Then, there's 'The Animated Bag'. There's this creepy bag that moves around like it's alive."

My eye twitched,

"Where the heck do these things come from, anyways?"

Hayner laughed,

"Yeah, some of them sound like total bogus."

"Then, wonder number 6, is "The Ghost Train Mystery." You can see the train pull into the main station sometimes, but you can almost always see it from Sunset Hill."

I blinked at this. Sunset hill was a place I'd always gone to unwind, but I'd never seen any 'Ghost Train'. Pence spoke in an ominous way,

"For they say the train is empty. No driver, no conductor, no passengers… NO RETURN."

I couldn't help but laugh at the way he was talking, and I smiled as I looked up at them

"Well, I think I'd like to see this 'Ghost Train'. Maybe I'll see it pull in here while you guys are at Sunset Hill. I'll even take a picture for you."

I held up my hands as if I were holding a camera and Hayner grinned, but Pence pouted,

"No way! I wanna see the ghost train for myself! I'll bet we see it before you."

I laughed a bit before blinking when the whistle blew; signaling that Hayner and the others' train would be leaving soon. They all climbed aboard and waved to me as the train took off. After a moment, I blinked,

"Wait… What's the 7th Wonder…?"

After I was finished with my work, I decided to board the train to Sunset Terrace and see if I could meet up with the others. I didn't end up finding them when I got there, though. I sighed and shook my head before deciding to head up to Sunset Hill.

I made my way up the short trail to the top of the hill, smiling as I looked around at the few benches placed here and there. I made my way over to the small clock statue that was made as a tribute to the one at Central Station, putting a hand up to it and smiling faintly as the gears inside ticked in time with the minute and second hand.

I'd always enjoyed coming here every now and then. It was one of my favorite places to just calm down and think, letting everything unwind so I could sort myself out. You could see everything from up here, and if you looked close enough, you could even see the beach far off in the distance. You could even see the tall railways that held the trams as they crossed between the different areas.

I sighed to myself and sat on one of the benches, watching the different trains pass by before sighing and closing my eyes. I just let my mind wander, trying to sort out my thoughts about what had been floating around in my mind for the past few days. I still wasn't too happy with myself about the fight. While I HAD been proud of myself for kicking Seifer's ass, the fact still remained that I'd let him get to me. And after that, I'd found out that Hayner and the others were all worried about me, because I was stupid enough to try and avoid them. I opened my eyes, staring at the sky.

Then there were the dreams… Was that really all they were? Was my mind really just making something up, and I was focusing on it so much that I caused myself to dream about it again and again? Or were the dreams trying to tell me something? Were these really the memories I'd so longed to have...? No matter where I turned to, all the records I found seemed to disprove everything in that dream even more. But… I'm not sure. Somehow, I had this feeling deep inside me that they really had happened.

I'd found myself starting to concentrate less on the fight from yesterday, and more about the dream, and all my effort to try and find out what it was. It all seemed so real; the fire, the screams, the creatures… now these new dreams… And Cloud….

He was looking for me, waiting for me, hoping that I come home after so long…

He was in pain.

I was suddenly jerked from my thoughts when the sudden chirp of a train's whistle sounded out, differently than the others. I frowned, turning and running to the fence made to keep people from falling off the hill, leaning over to see what kind of train would make such a sound.

Then, I saw it. The train that was so different from others. At first glance, it seemed like it was a train from some kind of ride in an amusement park; star shaped windows, a purple and blue paint job, and oddly enough was what looked like a wizard's hat on the top of it. I frowned, tilting my head a bit before my eyes widened. A closer look showed that there was no driver on the other side of the glass in the engineer's room, nor was there even a single passenger peeking out of the windows. You could see clear through the train, but no one was in sight.

I leaned further over the rail, trying to get a better view, as if it would make a person suddenly appear in view. But suddenly, it felt like someone grabbed me from behind and shoved me over the railing. My eyes widened as I flew over the edge, falling to the railing below, sure to get hit by the oncoming train. I closed my eyes tightly, awaiting my fate.

* * *

5 seconds, 10 seconds, 20 seconds, it didn't come. I hesitantly opened my eyes when I didn't feel the impact of the train, and when I opened my eyes again, I found myself laying on what seemed to be a rather large stain-glass platform. I slowly stood up, looking around, but the only other thing than the platform and I was pitch-black-nothingness. Suddenly, a voice rang out across the space,

_The door will be open soon, and your journey will soon begin. _

_So much to learn, so little time. Take your time. _

_Your door is still shut._

I bit my lip as a light from above shone down on the center of the platform and I hesitated. I wanted to go back, to my safe bed. But I wanted to move forward. I wanted to see what was going on. I swallowed hard, looking around me. I have to say, I was scared. I got this feeling deep inside me that felt like I was scared like this, before.

Always scared…

_Afraid to step forward. Afraid to go back. Forever motionless and afraid._

_Don't be afraid._

_Step forward into your light. Can you do it?_

I took a deep breath before clenching my fists, getting a determined look in my eye as I stepped forward, one foot after the other, slowly making my way to the light. When I stepped into the warmth of the light, three more lights beamed down to rest over the edges of the platform. Suddenly, weapons appeared in the lights.

A shield.

A staff.

A sword.

_A great power sleeps within you. If you give it form… It will give you strength._

_Choose well._

I looked around at the weapons, frowning as I examined them.

The shield had a design on it that looked of royalty; a fleur de lis took up the center, and two wolves lay beside it, and every symbol was some sort of shade of blue or silver. It looked heavy, and bulky, and difficult to move around. Despite this, it looked sturdy, and impenetrable, like not even the strongest of swords could pass it. A shield like this could block just about anything.

_The power of the Guardian _

_The kindness to aid friends_

_Dedicated bravery_

_A shield to repel all_

I looked up at the voice before turning, looking at the other two weapons.

The staff was just about as tall as me, and was very thin, but looked strong. I doubt that even if I slammed it as hard as I could on the ground it would break. The designs on the staff were elegant, and beautiful, and perched on the top of the staff was a dark green crystal sphere with three lighter green crystals floating around it in midair. It seemed to emanate a feeling of energy, and it felt as if all of my physical pain from yesterday's fight was just… gone. It seemed almost mystical, almost like just holding it would give me great wisdom

_The power of the Mystic _

_The aid to heal all _

_Magic to destroy all_

_A staff of wonder and ruin_

I turned again, to the last weapon.

The sword's katana styled blade was a dark colored grey, with a silver edge, and looked sharp enough to cut something by simply touching the edge of the blade. Its hilt was wrapped in a deep red, almost black color, and the hand guard was a silver color, and had a dragon and wolf wrapping around the hilt. Despite its darker colors, the sword seemed to shine brightly. Just looking at it seemed to give me strength.

_The power of the Warrior_

_Strong determination_

_Power to protect loved ones_

_A sword of terrible destruction_

I reached for the sword without a second thought

_Do you wish to choose this power?_

I nodded, and as soon as my fingertips brushed against the hilt, it glowed brightly and disappeared as the voice rang out again

_Your path is set._

_Now, what will you give up in exchange?_

I frowned and turned to the other two before walking over, reaching for the staff

_You give up this power?_

I nodded and the staff disappeared

_You've chosen the power of the warrior, with aid from the power of the Guardian. _

_You've given up the power of the mystic._

_Is this the form you choose?_

I looked up at the voice, nodding, and the sword appeared in my hand once again as black creatures and white creatures suddenly appeared.

_There will be times you have to fight… And there may be times you want to give up._

I yelped as one of the creatures tried to grab me and I backed up, clutching the sword tightly in my hand.

_But don't lose sight of your light._

I growled before running at the creatures, and it seemed as if for a moment my body had a will of its own as I cut down the creatures. One by one the creatures were cut down, and when they were gone, a shadow appeared below me and pulled me into the floor.

When I opened my eyes next, the blade was gone, and I was on another platform and across from me was a door, just standing there no wall to hold it up. I blinked a few times, going over to the door and peeking around the other side of it, seeing nothing on the other side. I made a face at this before going to the front of it and grabbing hold of the handles, pulling it open. Surely all I would see was just the blackness around us on the other side, right?

_Be careful. Behind that door is a completely different world._

_But don't be afraid. Don't stop walking._

I had to shield my eyes from the harsh light coming from the inside of the door and the next thing I saw was what looked like the bailey of a castle. I blinked and looked around before spotting someone over at the lookout, leaning against the wall and staring out at the gorge below. It was a man with black, spiked hair, a single strand of hair falling over his face, while the rest of it was pulled back. His outfit looked like a uniform of some kind, like from an army. It was Zack.

He looked over at me and grinned a bit before standing up straight, looking down at me with eyes that were blue, a slight hint of purple behind them

"What's most important to you?"

I blinked, staring up at him before looking down in thought. I didn't know why, but I felt like I should answer him, from the bottom of my heart. After a moment, I spoke up, as if in no control of what I was saying,

"Protecting those I love."

His grin just seemed to get wider, and he nodded, making the black spikes sway a bit. He came over and ruffled my hair,

"That's a good thing."

I sputtered a bit as he ruffled my hair before watching him walk off. I blinked a few times, my even more messy hair seeming to flop to one side. I sighed before shaking my head to replace my hair before looking out of the overlook, seeing a dark, eerie castle in the distance, surrounded by the same black creatures I'd fought with before. I frowned before turning again and walked toward the doorway, blinking when I saw a large, towering castle, with a marble, brass, and copper structure.

I stared up at it for a while before noticing a woman sitting on the railing by the stairs. I hesitated for a moment before going over to her. She had dark brown hair, and a black leather outfit. When she turned, I was greeted with red-ish brown eyes. She smiled at me, making me jump slightly. This was Tifa. She jumped to her feet off the railing and walked over to me

"What do you want out of life?"

I frowned and looked down before looking back up at her,

"To be strong. Strong enough to take care of myself, and stop running away."

The woman blinked before chuckling a bit, closing her eyes

"I see… Is being strong really that big of a deal?"

I blinked at what she said as she turned back, looking down the stairs, as if telling me to go down them. I looked at her before going down the stairs. On one of the walls were two fountains that acted like waterfalls, and a second man was leaning against the wall between them, arms crossed.

I stared at him with slightly wide eyes. This man... He had blonde, spiked hair, and was wearing almost all black, with the exception of a dark blue-ish grey shirt. He only had one sleeve on his left arm, along with black shoulder armor. The man seemed to have an obsession with belts, seeing as how they seemed to be on every part of his outfit.

When I came up, he looked up at me with piercing blue eyes. This… This was Cloud. This was the same Cloud from my dream…!

"What are you afraid of?"

I blinked, staring at him before frowning and looking down swallowing thickly. What was I afraid of? Everything. I was afraid of getting hurt, of hurting others. I was afraid of the unknown, and even of what I might find out about myself. But one thing, out of all the things I was afraid of, screamed out the most.

"Being alone."

The man blinked, staring at me before getting a slight sad look in his eye. I clenched my fists.

Out of anything else, I was… no, I _am_ afraid of being alone. It's always been my biggest fear. I can't lose anyone, or I'll break down. When Roxas ended up going missing, I… I just broke down. And soon, I ended up finding myself closer to everyone else, clinging onto them so I wouldn't lose them, too.

I don't want to be alone. I felt like I was alone for so long.

The blonde suddenly pulled me into a hug, and I was shocked. I stared ahead for a moment before looking up at him with wide eyes as he pulled away. He put a hand on my head

"I'm so sorry… I wasn't able to protect you."

I looked down before watching him head up the stairs, and the voice rang out once more

_You want to protect those you love…_

_You want to be strong…_

_You're afraid of being alone…_

_Your journey begins in the dead of night. Your road won't be easy, but a rising sun awaits your journey's end._

I frowned and looked up as a blinding light filled the area, and when it cleared, I was on that platform again. I stared at the ground, swallowing hard. Those people… They were the people from my dreams… from my memories…

I looked up as a light shown down at the other end of the platform, and I looked up at it, starting to walk closer to it, reaching out to it

_The closer you get to the light… the greater your shadow becomes._

I stopped short when I felt someone behind me, and I turned to see my own shadow stretch out before me, before warping, clawing its way out of the ground and rising up above me, laughing. It was a woman, with long silvery hair, and piercing red, cat-slit eyes. Her figure was thin, and black markings crawled over her skin. Her most prominent features, though, were her claws, wolf ears, and a flowing wolf tail. In a way, she was rather beautiful, but my gut kept screaming at me to run away. I swallowed hard, frozen in fear.

The woman grinned maliciously, showing her wolfish canines as she laughed, her voice seeming to echo not only in the space around us, but in my head as well. I forced myself to take a step back. The woman's eyes crinkled with her smile, and she to a long, deep breath before letting out a piercing howl. I cried out in fear and pain at the howl, having to clamp my hands down over my ears to try and keep the sound out, but it was no use. The howl echoed throughout my mind, repeating itself over and over.

Suddenly, it just stopped, and I found myself in nothing but darkness. No platform, no light, no woman, no nothing. I frowned, looking around and calling out, but there was no answer. I swallowed thickly and sat upright in the nothingness, looking around before seeing the same little girl from my dreams, hugging her knees close to her as tears flowed down her face,

"I'm scared."

I jolted as I heard her speak out. It seemed to be coming from everywhere. Not just from her, but from inside me, as well. After she hiccupped, she spoke up again,

"I'm scared."

"What are you afraid of?"

"I want to go home…! I want to go home! I don't want to be alone anymore! I just want to go home… _Please_, let me go home…"

I stared at her before starting to look down, and her words echoed in my mind,

_I want to go home…_

I soon found the girl's voice changing to my own in my head. These were my thoughts. They were my feelings. I felt scared, and alone. I hated being left alone in the darkness.

_I don't want to be alone._

* * *

A chiming rang out and I suddenly sat up, eyes wide. When I looked around, I saw that I was still on the bench at Sunset Hill, the small clock tower ringing out in the changing of the hours. I frowned before letting out a long breath, staring down at the ground.

Was all of that just a dream?

I shook my head to clear it before starting to head back. When I got to the station, I went up to the clock tower to see if I'd find Hayner and the others. Sure enough, there they were. Hayner was sitting down eating icecream, and it looked like the other two had just gotten there. They all turned when they heard me, and I smiled, waving. Hayner turned back,

"Tomorrow, we'll head to the beach."

Pence nodded,

"Next day's the fair."

"The last day of summer."

Hayner glared at Ollete,

"Don't say that! You'll give me an ulcer!"

I laughed,

"Not before you explode from too much icecream, first."

Hayner jumped and stared at his icecream before groaning and turning away from it, making the rest of us laugh. Ollete turned to me, smiling,

"You'll come, too, right?"

I smiled, nodding,

"Of course. Wouldn't miss it for the world."

Pence grinned, nodding,

"You better not!"

I smiled before looking at him, blinking

"Hey, Pence. You said there were seven wonders… What's the 7th wonder?"

Pence blinked before getting a gleam in his eye, and I sweatdropped

"HHoho, have we taken an interest in the Seven Wonders?"

I made a face, stating 'no' simply, but this just made Pence laugh.

"It's at that haunted mansion. They say there's a girl who appears at the second floor window… and even a man in a black coat wandering around in the front hall… even though no one's lived there for years."

After we all said goodbye, I made my way to the hole in the wall of Tram Common that lead to the forest. Deep in that forest was a mansion, separated from the rest of the town. No one really knows who had lived in it, at first, and everyone is curious as to why it was built so far outside of the walls of the town. I had gone there once before, when I'd first come to the town, but I wasn't able to get in because of the big padlock on the gate. It made me wonder what they were trying to hide.

By the time I got to the mansion, the sun was almost completely set, giving the mansion an even more eerie feeling to it. I frowned and looked up at the mansion before my eyes widened when I saw a light coming from the second story window. So the rumors… were true? I walked up to the gate and looked at the padlock before grabbing onto the gate and climbing over.

Whatever they were trying to hide, they weren't doing a very good job of it.

I landed effortlessly on my feet and looked around before looking up at the second story window, frowning a bit. I walked over to one of the windows beside the door and peeked in, looking around, but quickly hid myself to the side of the window when I saw someone walking in the main hall. I frowned before easing myself over and peeking in, trying to see who it was. I couldn't really see their face, since they had a black coat on, but I could tell it was a man.

I frowned and tried to get a better look before seeing him head into a room to the side. I frowned before heading over and peeking through the window to this room. When I looked in the room, I saw a broken table in the middle that only a rather large blast could have destroyed. The man in the black cloak walked over and sat in the chair that would have stood at the table. Across from him was another man. This man had red bandages around his face, and had amber colored eyes. He was draped in rather heavy clothes, looking like they would be terrible to walk around in during the summer heat.

"I've waited, and now I want to know. What is it that you want?"

I blinked noticing the window next to mine having been cracked to let air in. The man in the red garb answered the other,

"Revenge."

I stared at the man with wide eyes, and the other across from him seemed to tense up

"Revenge…"

"Now, for the finishing touches. First, we must dispose of Naminé. She did a splendid job with Sora, but it's high time she disappeared. Roxas isn't the only one who was never supposed to exist."

My eyes widened to their fullest point. What did he mean 'Roxas wasn't supposed to exist'? What had he done with Roxas?

"Take care of it Ansem."

I began to tremble as the man in black nodded, heading out of the room. Was it their fault Roxas disappeared? Was it because of them? I had to get to the bottom of this. And these men were going to tell me what exactly they did with Roxas.

Whether I had to force it out of them or not.


	6. Day 5: Truth Part 2

AN: And so after about a year (lol) we start back up on Destiny Unleashed~ If anything sounds a bit different from what I normally write, please forgive me; my writing style's changed just a bit from last year, and so it may look a bit different.

* * *

-Day 5- Part 2

I quickly came around to the front doors and grabbed the handles. After rattling them for a moment, I cursed to myself when I found that the doors were locked. I growled before slamming my hand on the door in frustration and quickly walking away, going around back to the wall that lead to the back door. Needless to say, I was on a warpath, and I did _not_ look happy.

It seemed my slamming on the door gained the attention of the others in the building, because the two men left the room in a bit of a hurry. I heard the front door open and Ansem call out who was there. I didn't say anything, obviously.

I easily scaled the wall that lead to the backyard, jumping down and looking around. There was a rather large fountain in the middle of what looked to be a courtyard, with a Pegasus shaped statue in the middle of it. The entire place looked to be let go, as weeds and vines covered nearly everything, and the grass came up to my shins.

I made my way over to the glass doors that went inside the back of the manor, and I could just barely make out the two men from before and a girl head out the front. The girl had her brown hair pulled back into a ponytail, and I could just make out a lion crest on the back of her black jacket. Was this the girl that was seen in the window?

They all exited the mansion to try and find the person who was so desperately trying to get in. However, they wouldn't be able to find her. I was going to leave here, and I was going to bring Roxas with me.

It took a few tries, but I finally managed to get the doors open. I walked inside and looked around to find that the place was a lot bigger than it let on to be from the outside. The place looked rundown, and yet even from the debris, this place seemed so familiar. The crests on the shields that the suits of armor held, the wolf crests that donned the walls, the paintings, the floor, everything all seemed so familiar. The rooms down here didn't seem to hold anything, with the exception of even more rubble.

I went further in to see two flights of stairs, and I took the one closest to me. The door it led to opened to a library, and I found myself at what seemed to be a dead-end. I sighed a bit before looking around at the shelves. Something seemed off with this room, like it was hiding something.

I took a look at some of the books, trying to find one of those cliché hidden passages that appeared if you would pull a book… nothing.

"And just what do you think you are doing in here, young lady?"

I jolted and turned to see the same man in red from before. I grit my teeth and backed up a bit, getting into a position where I could defend myself as he stood with his arms behind his back

"I'm bringing Roxas back home. I know you have him."

"Home?" The man laughed at the thought, "A Nobody cannot have a 'home'. The only purpose he serves is to return something he stole."

"And just what is that? What did Roxas do that made it to where you would kidnap him and keep him away from his friends?"

"A heart."

I blinked, staring at him questioningly,

"… A heart?" I repeated

"Yes. He holds half of the heart that so rightfully belongs to a young man named Sora. In the end, he'll have to give it back."

… Sora? Why… did that name sound so familiar…?

I shook my head violently, clenching my fists

"No! I don't care if he holds the other half of this kid's heart or just took a pencil from the stupid kid! Roxas belongs with us! And I'm going to bring him home whether you like it or not! I'm not going to put Hayner and the others through this anymore!"

This seemed to catch the man off guard, and he frowned faintly,

"You would keep a boy's heart away from him and protect a Nobody? Just to satisfy your own wants?"

I shook my head once more, putting a hand over my own heart,

"No. You're wrong! Roxas' heart is Roxas' alone! It belongs to him and no one else! Roxas isn't just some 'Nobody'! He's my friend, and I want him back!"

Suddenly black flames appeared in my hand, and from them the same katana from my dream appeared, as if summoned by my emotions. The man's eyes widened as I stared at the blade before I shook my head quickly and lunged at him.

Within the next second, the man was sent flying through the door, knocking it off its hinges. He quickly got back to his feet and dodged every other swing I tried to land on him, chasing after him as he backed down the stairs

"Where is he?"

"And you think I would tell you? You'll ruin everything I had planned."

"I don't care!"

I swung at him again before yelping as he grabbed one of the spears the suits of armor were holding, blocking my attack with it and sending me flying

"DiZ, what's going on?"

DiZ? Was that his name?

The man paid no attention to Ansem as he shouted from the room opposite the library, only kept his eyes on me as he pushed me back. I honestly wasn't used to fighting with swords, and this man was taking full advantage of that. Before I knew it, the sword was knocked out of my hand, and I had a cut across my hand from the spear. I clutched at it before dodging another swing,

"You will not get in the way of what I've planned for so long!"

I dodged one swing after another, trying to keep myself intact, though it wasn't helping much considering I was getting small cuts everywhere. Ansem came out of the room and peered over the banister, just to cry out in alarm when he saw what was going on,

"DiZ!"

Yet again, the man paid no mind, continuously swinging before he jolted as I grabbed the spear. He growled, trying to grab it back from me, but I just pulled it forward and kicked him in his stomach, making him let go as he doubled over. I quickly turned the spear back around to DiZ, breathing hard as a blonde girl came trotting out behind Ansem, her eyes widening when she saw the sight before her.

I couldn't help myself as tears streamed down my face, breathing hard as I trembled, aiming the spear at DiZ.

"Give him back! I'll kill you myself if you don't! Give Roxas back!"

The two on the second level both repeated Roxas' name in surprise as they stared down at us. I watched as DiZ glared up at me, clutching at his stomach,

"Insolent little brat…! All of this for a Nobody."

"For God's sake, he's not a Nobody! He's my friend and I want him back!"

Before I could even react the man lunged toward me, and I could hear the girl above shout for him to stop, but within a second, I felt the man's fist collide with my stomach, and I choked as I doubled over, eyes widening before I yelped as I was sent into the wall. I felt my head hit the wall hard, and my vision blurred as I heard voices from around me.

"DiZ what the hell did you just do?" a girl's voice spoke up from upstairs, getting closer, and I could hear a scuffle in front of me… maybe she grabbed him away from me…

"You almost killed her!" that sounded like Ansem…

"She was getting in the way! She must not meddle in my plans! Roxas will give Sora's heart back whether he wants to or not! This girl will not stop that!" That was DiZ…

I could hear running footsteps coming toward me, sounding like clacking sandals,

"She's hurt!" That was the blonde girl….

"Give back… Roxas…"

I managed to spit those words out before blacking out, and everything after that turned into darkness.

* * *

I wasn't the type to really go out. I'd just barely arrived in Twilight Town, and I barely knew anyone, let alone myself. I was scared, to say the least. The manager was nice enough to let the rent slide until I got comfortable in the town. But in all honesty, I wasn't sure I would. I just holed myself in my room nearly the entire time, staring at the wall. Slowly, my apartment was filled with things that my neighbors gave to me, and the place started to look a bit less empty.

It wasn't until Roxas had showed up that I really started coming out of my shell. We both connected quite a lot. We both didn't really know who we were, other than our names and a few details. Hayner and the others both found us quickly after we met, and we all started to hang out together.

But even that was short lived. Roxas started hanging around these strange people who always went around in black coats. He ended up disappearing after he and Hayner got into a fight. Hayner continuously blamed himself for that happening, and nothing any of us said could get him to think otherwise;

"It was because I got mad at him for hanging around those other guys instead of us. If I hadn't yelled at him 'cause of it, then he would still be here."

Ollete and Pence couldn't get him to think otherwise.

Searches lasted for months, but we could never find any sign of him. We all lost our friend.

From that point on, Hayner rarely smiled, and always looked as if he'd met one of the worst people ever. It took us a while to get him to lighten up a bit more, but we could all tell he was never _really_ happy.

Why? Why did this have to happen? All because of some kid who's supposedly missing part of his heart?

Screw that kid! Roxas' heart is his! I don't care if this Sora kid is...

is...

Sora...

* * *

_"Sora!" _

_A little boy with brown, spiked hair turned to look at me as I ran toward him and a young boy with silver hair_

_"Sora, where are you going?" _

_The little boy turned and looked down, his lips pursing into a sad pout as the boy beside him crossed his arms_

_"Daddy says he wants me to stay at my aunt and uncle's house while he goes off to train with a… a…"_

_"Keyblade."_

_The bunette nodded to the older boy_

_"He and some other peoples are trying to become Keyblade Masters."_

_"Well... we'll just play again when you come back, right?"_

_The boy with silver hair shook his head as the younger boy frowned sadly and looked down,_

_"We're going really far away, Bailey. To a different world. We won't be able to just come back."_

_"But...!"_

_"Don't cry. It's gonna make Sora cry."_

_"But!"_

_As if on cue, the boy with brown hair started to sniffle, and tears streamed down his face as he began to cry_

* * *

Sora... Roxas...

* * *

_The time has come for you to start your journey… _

_Remember who you are, Keeper…_

_And remember: you are not alone._

* * *

Hayner… Pence… Ollete… I'm sorry. It looks like… I won't get to go to the beach with you after all.


End file.
